Hygiene product disposal units receive and temporarily house personal hygiene products. Most commonly, such disposal units reside in public bathrooms to provide a sanitary receptacle that houses used feminine hygiene products, such as tampons, etc; however, such disposal units can also be used to house syringes, diapers, etc. Such units usually include a storage chamber and a cover. The cover can include a partition secured thereto to form a “V-shaped” insertion pocket. The partition serves to reduce the visibility of the contents of the storage chamber when inserting subsequent used hygiene products. However, the partition can consume substantial storage space in the storage chamber, thereby requiring servicing of the unit more frequently.
In addition, such disposal units often include a hand-operated cover that requires a user to touch the unit, which can be undesirable. Although automated units exist, such units require purchasing with the necessary motors and gears to implement the automated operation. This increases the initial purchase cost and prevents the purchaser from later adding the feature if the need or desire arises. In addition, failure of such motors and gears can be difficult to service, often requiring removal of the whole unit from service until a repair is performable. Further, the integration of the electronics that power and control the motor substantially limits the ability to clean and sanitize the unit.
The disposal units typically include waste product, such as blood, sweat, etc., which emits a foul odor. Typically, addressing such foul odors is accomplished using separate wall mounted air fresheners. The use of these air fresheners requires an additional product to be provided and serviced apart from the disposal unit, increasing cost and servicing requirements. In addition, adding a static air freshener to the disposal unit provides a very limited distribution of the air freshener scent. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a hygiene product disposal apparatus and method of use that overcomes at least some of these shortcomings.